Passover Recipes

Passover begins at sundown this evening, hence six diabetic Passover recipes, including Passover-Inspired Braised Lamb With Dried Fruit and Hazelnut Citrus Torte. And to all my friends who are Jewish, here's to a happy Passover. Enjoy!

PASSOVER-INSPIRED BRAISED LAMB WITH DRIED FRUIT

This is from Mark Bittman and Sam Sifton in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. The recipe begins, “This is a play on tsimmes, a traditional Jewish casserole. The flavors of North Africa and the Middle East are utilized for this lamb shoulder. Braising the meat in red wine yields a tender cut of meat without a lot of work.”

Yield: At least 8 Servings; Time: 3 hours, largely unattended.

This was featured in “Feast in the South” and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

1 lamb shoulder, boned, about 4 pounds

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

1 large onion, peeled

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon minced ginger, or 1 teaspoon dried

1 cinnamon stick

1 tablespoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons ground coriander

10 allspice berries or a pinch of ground allspice

1/2 to 3/4 bottle not-too-soft red wine

3/4 cup pitted prunes

3/4 cup pitted apricots

Chopped parsley or cilantro for garnish

Preparation

Season the meat with salt and pepper and put it in a pot that will fit it snugly and can later be covered. Add the spices and a 1/2 bottle of wine. Bring to a boil, lower the heat to a slow bubble, and cover. Cook about an hour, then add onion, garlic, ginger and dried fruit, and check to make sure the liquid isn’t evaporating too quickly; turn and continue to cook. Add the remaining red wine if the mixture looks dry, but essentially cook this without fuss.

When the meat is very tender — after about 2 1/2 hours — uncover. Check and adjust the seasoning as necessary, garnish and serve.

BROCCOLI KNISHES (PAREVE)

Yield: 4 servings

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Source: Passover Lite Kosher Cookbook

Author: Gail Ashkanazi-Hankin

Ingredients

1 cup mashed potatoes

1/3 cup matzo meal

2 Tbsp potato starch

1/2 small onion, finely chopped

2 egg whites or 1/4 cup Passover egg substitute

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli, steamed and finely chopped

Nonstick cooking spray

Directions

Preheat oven to 375F.

Generously coat a baking sheet with the cooking spray; set aside.

In a bowl, combine the potatoes, matzo meal, potato starch, onion, egg whites, pepper, and salt; knead together. Divide the dough into 6 balls and flatten each.

Divide the broccoli evenly onto each circle, fold over, and press edges to seal.

Arrange the knishes in a single layer and place the baking sheet on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake for 15 minutes on each side. Serve hot. Makes 6 Servings.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 82; Sodium: 124 mg; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Carbohydrates: 15 g; Exchanges: 1 Starch

MATZO TOFFEE WITH CANDIED GINGER

This is from Melissa Clark in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Melissa wrote, “Traditional matzo toffee — a Passover-friendly spin on saltine toffee — is an addictive three-layer confection of crackers, brown sugar toffee and melted chocolate. In this version, the chocolate gets a spicy boost from the addition of both fresh ginger juice and chewy candied ginger. Or substitute a topping of cacao nibs, sea salt and/or toasted, chopped nuts. Matzo toffee will keep for at least eight days, stored airtight at room temperature, which will take you through the holidays in the sweetest way possible.”

Yield: About 2 dozen pieces.

This was featured in “Closing the Seder with Something New” and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

4 to 6 sheets matzo, preferably salted

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 cup packed light brown sugar

2 teaspoons ginger juice, optional (see note)

Large pinch fine sea salt

6 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate (1 cup)

3 ounces chopped candied ginger (3/4 cup)

Preparation

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, allowing it to go over the edges of the pan. Cover the bottom of the pan with parchment. Arrange matzo over parchment in one layer, breaking pieces to fit as necessary.

In a medium pot over medium-high heat, bring butter and sugar to a boil for 3 minutes, until thickened and smooth. Stir in ginger juice and salt. Quickly pour mixture over matzos. Transfer pan to oven and bake 15 minutes until bubbly.

Remove pan from oven. Sprinkle chocolate evenly over caramel. Let stand 5 minutes until chocolate is softened. Use an offset spatula to spread chocolate smoothly over surface of toffee. Immediately sprinkle with candied ginger. Place pan in refrigerator and chill toffee for 1 hour. Break into large pieces.

Tip

To make ginger juice, grate a 3-inch piece of peeled ginger into a fine-mesh strainer and press out the juice.

HAZELNUT CITRUS TORTE

This also comes from Melissa Clark in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Melissa wrote, “A touch of quinoa flour gives this hazelnut torte an underlying smokiness that makes it more complex than most. It also makes it both gluten-free and kosher for Passover. But if you can’t find quinoa flour, millet flour will work well, too, as would wheat flour (though of course it would no longer be gluten-free). With a supple, moist crumb, this torte will keep for several days, well-wrapped at room temperature, so feel free to make it ahead. Then serve it with a citrus sorbet or sweet citrus salad and a mound of whipped crème fraîche or mascarpone.”

Yield: 8 servings; Time: 1 hour

This was also featured in “Closing the Seder with Something New” and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, more for oiling pan

200 grams granulated sugar (1 cup)

95 grams hazelnut or almond flour (1 cup plus 1 tablespoon)

30 grams quinoa flour (1/3 cup)

4 large eggs, separated

2 tablespoons grated lemon zest

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon fresh orange juice

2 grams salt (1/4 teaspoon)

Preparation

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottom of an 8- or 9-inch springform pan with parchment and brush pan with olive oil.

Combine a third of the sugar (about 1/3 cup), the hazelnut flour and the quinoa flour in a bowl.

In another bowl, use an electric mixer to whip another third of the sugar with the egg yolks on medium speed until thick and pale yellow in color, about 5 minutes. Beat in 1/4 cup olive oil, the lemon zest and the citrus juices. Fold in the dry ingredients.

In a clean bowl, use an electric mixer to beat egg whites and salt until frothy. Beat in remaining sugar on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 to 5 minutes. Fold a third of the egg-white mixture into batter. Gently fold in remaining egg-white mixture in 2 batches. Pour batter into pan.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Remove pan sides. Invert pan, remove parchment and turn cake right side up onto a plate.

Tip

Measurements for dry ingredients are given by weight for greater accuracy. The equivalent measurements by volume are approximate.

CINNAMON RAISIN KUGEL

Yield: 12 servings

Source: Enlitened Kosher Cooking

Print: http://diabeticgourmet.com/recipes/html/674.shtml

Ingredients

1 package (8 oz) low-fat cream cheese, softened

2 Tbsp stick butter, melted

3/4 cup Equal Sugar Lite

3 eggs

2 egg whites

1/2 cup low-fat milk (2%)

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, divided

4 cup (8 oz) wide egg noodles, cooked and drained

1/2 cup golden raisins

2 Tbsp Equal Sugar Lite, additional

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Beat cream cheese and butter until well combined. Mix in 3/4 cup Equal Sugar Lite, eggs and egg whites, milk, vanilla and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon until well blended. Stir in cooked noodles and raisins.

Pour mixture into 13 x 9-inch baking pan well sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Combine 2 tablespoons Equal Sugar Lite and remaining 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Sprinkle over top of noodle mixture.

Bake in preheated oven 20 to 25 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Serve warm.

Nutritional Information (Per Serving): Calories: 206; Protein: 7 g; Sodium: 102 mg; Cholesterol: 79 mg; Fat: 8 g; Saturated Fat: 4 g; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Sugars: 11.5 g; Carbohydrates: 27 g

HONEY CUPCAKES (for PASSOVER)

This comes from Nichelle Stephens, About.com's Cupcake expert, who writes, "Honey cake is a Jewish traditional dessert that is often served at high holidays like Passover and Rosh Hashanah. I am not Jewish, but I had my first Seder meal at the Catholic elementary school that I attended in Alabama. Now that I have gotten your attention with the previous sentence, it is important as a food writer to sample foods from different cultures and countries. The cool thing about cupcakes is that you can be inspired to bake cupcakes from food all over the world. Honey cupcakes are a nice treat for both kids and adult that will be welcomed at Passover Seder dinner along family and friends. A Passover seder is a festive holiday meal. In some ways, it is somewhat similar to Thanksgiving where families gather, but there are prayers and a ritual that happens throughout the meal. These honey cupcakes are adapted from a Baked-Delicious.com recipe that originally had whole wheat flavor. For Passover, it is necessary to use unleavened bread like matzo for baking." Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 35 minutes; Total Time: 50 minutes; Yield: 18 cupcakes

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

A pinch of salt

1 tsp ground allspice

1/2 tsp grated nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup honey

1 lemon (only use the juice the zest)

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons milk

2 eggs

Preparation

Preheat oven to 325F. In a large bowl, sift the cake meal, flour, salt, spices and baking soda. In a saucepan over low heat, melt the honey and butter. Add in the lemon zest and juice and stir until well blended. Make a well in the center of the bowl that has the dry ingredients. Slowly add the honey mixture, stirring until it is well blended.

Beat the eggs and mil together in a measuring cup or small bowl. Then slowly beat into the batter. Use an ice cream scoop to pour the batter into baking cups. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the center cupcake is well risen and springy.

Set the pan on a cooling rack for 5 minutes.

Make a honey syrup with 4 tablespoons honey, 2 tablespoons water and the grated zest of one lemon. Drizzle or brush honey syrup on top. For garnish you can add lemon zest and chopped almonds or peanuts on top. Honey cupcakes keep well and taste even better after two or three days.